Yannis Vasilis

Yannis Vasilis (born Ibrahim Yaylalı) is a former Turkish ultra-nationlist[1] turned Turkish-Greek pacifist, activist, promoting and defending of Greek heritage in Turkey. A convinced Turkey nationalist, he joined the Turkish army in 1994 to fight Kurdish insurgencies.[2] Taken captive, his family requested governmental help which was declined on the basis of Yaylali to be a Greek. In 2013, he change his name to Yannis Vasilis.[2]

He was arrested on April 22, 2017,[3] for commemorating online the early 20th century Greeks and Armenians genocides that same day.[2]

The 3 charges brough against him were for "insulting the President", "inciting people to disobey laws" and "spreading propaganda for a terrorist organization". Yaylali has been a notable activist in the Hidden Greeks, encouraging Turks to dig and revive their link to their Greek heritage. He was released in 2018.[2]

See also

References
  1. "Greek and Armenian "terrorists"! Wild comments by Erdoğan, but is he Greek himself?". May 6, 2020.
  2. News, Hellenic (July 2, 2017). "Free Yannis: Birth of Hidden Greek Movement in Turkey". Hellenic News of America. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
  3. "Barış Aktivisti Yannis Vasilis Yaylalı tutuklandı". www.cumhuriyet.com.tr.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.